Just One Chance
by holymarine
Summary: Sakura receives a mystery gift. Thinking it to be Sasuke. When the true sender is revealed, will she be kind or angry. Not very chrismasy


Hi people. I don't really know what made me write this. It just came to me and I just wrote it. Lol.

**Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto **

"Hi there" - Speaking

'I need to know' - Thinking

**Just One Chance**

It was winter time again in the land of fire, and it was snowing. Which was an odd occurrence as it was usually just frosty with no snow at all

Here we find a pink haired girl called Sakura Haruno, one of the head fan girls of the last Uchiha, Sasuke. She believed that since it had not snowed  
in Konoha for over 10 years, that it was a sign of good things to come. This to her was to finally get a date with her dear Sasuke-kun.

She was looking at her photo of team seven. She liked her team. Well maybe her sensei Kakashi and definitely Sasuke. But kami had to punish her.  
For to receive perfection of a certain Uchiha, she had to suffer with a pain in the butt, Naruto.

Naruto – Kami, did he make her mad. The constant getting in between her and her true love was annoying. And the almost non-stop asking for a date.  
She hit him a lot because he just wouldn't stop. Plus with his bright orange and ratty appearance, she was repulsed by him. Especially lately he would  
get marks and tears on his outfit and sometimes he would come back with bad repairs and faded marks still there. She had not seen him much after he  
came back from retrieving the Godaime – Tsunade. Must be because of Christmas.

Speaking of Christmas, it was only a few days away. She was excited to see what she got. She already had an excellent present ready for Sasuke that  
would put Ino-pigs to shame.

She decided to get up. She showered, got dressed and had some breakfast with her parents. Deciding to go for a walk, she put on her heavy coat and  
gloves. Walking down the busy streets, past busy people rushing at the last minute for presents.

Having just followed her feet, she appeared at the Hokage tower. Deciding to see if her team had any last minute missions, she headed to the Godaime's office.

When she arrived she got ready to knock, but heard voices inside. Not being able to stop herself, she listened in.

"Well here is the last mission brat, just come back and you can get your last payment"

"Cheers, grandma Tsunade"

BANG

"Damn it boy, don't call me that"

"Sorry" "D-do y-you think she will like it?"

"Yes brat, she will love it"

"_Cough cough_" It sounded like someone had a serious cold

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I am fine, but I have to go complete this, then collect my order"

She heard footsteps towards the door she was behind, so she quickly made it look like she just arrived. The door opened to show her team mate Naruto Uzumaki.

"Oh, hi Sakura-Chan" he smiled at her "Are you here to see the Hokage?"

"Yeah, I am so can you get out the road baka" she said cruelly.

Naruto's smile slipped but was back to normal in a second

"Yeah sure, sorry about that" he stepped out the door and moved aside. She walked into the room

"Oh yeah, Sakura Chan would you like……"

His answer to his incomplete question was the door slammed in his face. He let his smile go and sadly walked away

Inside Tsunade's office, Sakura bowed to Tsunade

"Good morning, Tsunade Sama" Tsunade nodded in acknowledgement "Sorry you had to put up with my team mates rude uncivilised behaviour"

"Don't worry about it, you get used to it once in a while"

"Still he doesn't need to be such a loud mouth idiot all the time"

Tsunade's eyebrow started to twitch in annoyance

"Is there any reason you are here Sakura?"

"Um, I was wandering if team seven had any upcoming missions lately?"

"No your team has some time off for the holiday season to relax and recuperate" Tsunade replied "After everything the team has been through"

Sakura agreed mentally about that statement. The Sound/Sand invasion, the loss of the Sandaime, the demon Gaara who attacked them and someone  
putting Sasuke in the hospital.

She remembered the fight against Gaara. She had been shoved into a tree by his sand so hard she was knocked out. She awoke back in Konoha. Believing Sasuke  
to be her saviour, she was told by him it was Naruto who saved her. She excused it as Sasuke being king to the idiot and letting him take the credit.

"Is there anything else Sakura, I am a busy lady you know"

"No, sorry Hokage-Sama, I will be going" She shut the door behind herself

"_Sigh_ I hope she will like the gift he gets her. Bu that was a bad cough Naruto had. I need to remember to give him a check up"

She looked back at her paperwork, cursed, then got on with it

* * *

Sakura awoke the next day, Christmas Eve. She did her normal routine and went for breakfast downstairs. While eating, there was a knock on the door. She walked  
over and opened it to find no one. Annoyed, she was about to shut the door when something caught her eye. It was a beautifully wrapped present. Picking it up and  
seeing that it was for her, she took it inside and shut the door.

She took off the wrapping and stared in awe at the item. It was a gorgeous golden necklace with diamonds embedded. She squealed in happiness.

"This is from Sasuke Kun, I just know it. He must have been too shy to give it to me face to face". She hurried and finished her breakfast. She put her winter clothing on  
and gently put the necklace on. She rushed out the door looking for her kind prince.

After a little while of looking she found him, with the annoying Ino hanging off his back.

'This will set the pig straight'

"Hi Sasuke kun, Ino pig" she said when she approached them.

"Hnn, get off me Ino"

"What do you want forehead, Sasuke and I were heading to get something to eat" Ino snapped.

"I just came to thank MY Sasuke Kun for MY Christmas present" She took the necklace out of her jacket, which was still around her neck.

Ino looked jealous as she turned red in anger

"Hnn that's not from me"

"W-what do you mean Sasuke Kun, if it's not from you then who could it be from?" she asked confused

"If you looked properly you would see it's from Naruto"

Shocked she took the wrapping out of her pocket having stuffed it in there quickly while trying to get ready. She looked at the label.

TO SAKURA

MERRY CHRISTMAS

FROM YOUR TRUE LOVE

NARUTO UZUMAKI

"Hahahaha, you got a gift from the loser Naruto. I knew there was no way MY dear Sasuke Kun would buy you something" laughed Ino

Sakura turned red in embarrassment and quickly ran away. She stopped a few blocks away and wiped away some tears she had not noticed. Her embarrassment  
quickly turned into anger. She had one goal at the moment

DESTROY NARUTO

* * *

Later in the afternoon, Naruto was walking home. It was dark and cold so he decided to go home and heat up. He didn't feel well.

'I hope she liked the gift, it took me a while to save up for it. But it was worth it, if it brought her happiness' he thought

Suddenly a shadow loomed over him. He turned to see an annoyed Sakura

"Hi Sakura Chan, I see you got my gift I hope you liked……"

SMACK

He was launched off his feet and slammed into the icy ground behind him. He tried to get up but was kicked back down. He was then kicked over and over.

"Do you have any idea how much you have embarrassed me today? In front of Sasuke kun?" she screamed when she stopped

Spitting out some blood, he managed to utter out "I just wanted you….."

BANG

He was hit in the stomach and he started crying out in pain

"What you thought you could buy me some jewellery then I would be all over you, you freak" she shouted

She continued to kick and punch him until she got tired. He was bloody and bruised and had problems breathing.

"You know you were growing a little to me. To be a good friend, but this has just proven how low you are"

"Look at you, you're scruffy and you stink. You wear bright colours and act like a clown. When will you realise no one wants you around"

She grabbed the necklace and chucked it to the ground. She then pulled out a kunai and started stabbing it. Chipping and breaking it.

"Stay away from me you freak"

She took another look at him and then walked away home. Naruto could hardly move. He had put up with this from the villagers, but to get it from the one he cared  
about most, destroyed something within the boy.

He gently crawled to the necklace remains, wincing in pain. He picked them up and carefully put them in his one remaining un-ripped pocket. He then proceeded to  
limp his way home

* * *

It was the day after Boxing Day and it was another team meeting for Team 7.

Sakura entered the clearing to find Sasuke by himself

'Perfect it's just me and Sasuke kun'

"Hi Sasuke Kun" she said when she stood next to him "How was your Christmas?"

"Fine"

"That's good. I got most of the things I wanted, but I would have preferred to spend it with you"

"Hnn"

Forty minutes passed with Sakura trying to get Sasuke's attention with no results, when Kakashi arrived.

"Yo" he said

"YOUR LATE" she screamed

"Yeah Yeah" he takes a look around the clearing "Where is Naruto?"

"Who cares, he only gets in our way" she said

"Be that what you think, if we are to do team training, we need all members" he said annoyed "So I want you two to go looking for him and so will I"

"Do we have to sensei?"

"Yes" he then Shunshins away

Annoyed, she turns around to Sasuke

"Do you want me to go with you, Sasuke Kun?"

"Hnn, no, just go look for the dobe somewhere else" He then walked away

Upset she turned towards the market to start her search

'I bet he is in Ichirakus stuffing his face like a pig again'

She walked into the Ramen bar and noticed Ayame who saw Sakura

"Hello Sakura San, here for something to eat? Where is Naruto?"

"You mean he is not here?"

"No, he hasn't been here for a few months. Father and I have been getting worried about him"

'That's strange this is usually the only thing he eats'

"You could check his apartment, he could be there"

She smacked her head as she didn't think of that. She then realised she didn't know where he lived.

"Em……by any chance, can you give me directions to his apartment?"

"Sure. Here" Ayame wrote down the directions and handed them to her

"Thanks, Ayame san" She then turned and ran off

* * *

Half an hour later she finally found his apartment block. She noticed it was in the poor sector of the village. She walked into the building. She noticed that  
the walls were cracked and the paint chipped. There were marks all around. She didn't want to guess what they were

She reached the top floor with difficulty due to the stairs being wrecked. She noticed that his door was battered and was just hanging on their hinges.

She knocked the door. No answer. She hammered on it. No answer

"Darn you Naruto, you baka. If you don't answer the door I am knocking it down"

There was noise. This annoyed her even more

"Don't say I didn't warn you"

She then bashed the already tender door down and stormed in.

The place was a disaster area. The furniture was ratty and torn. The kitchen was dirty and she was not going to check his bathroom. And worse of all there  
was a terrible smell coming from somewhere. She headed to the bedroom, but the smell got worse the closer she got. Turning up her courage, she pressed onwards

"Naruto?"

She opened the door and almost gagged. The smell was unbearable, so she covered her mouth and nose with her sleeve.

The room was freezing cold and was the worse kept of the apartment. She saw Naruto lying on his bed. She was about to shout at him, but noticed the smell  
was coming from him. He was curled in a ball, the bed was a wreck and he had a very thin cover over him.

"Naruto?"

She approached him. She reached out and touched him but recoiled quickly. He was burning hot

She then realised something alarming. He wasn't breathing properly. She turned him over and gasped loudly. He was still covered in blood and bruises. Some cuts  
he had received were pussy and looked heavily infected. But the most shocking was she could clearly see his ribs

She started crying. She shook him but he would not wake up. She ran to the window and opened it.

"Help, please help someone" she screamed out

The next second Kakashi was next to her on the window sill

"What's wrong Sakura?"

He looked past her. His lone eye went wide. He pushed her aside gently and was next to his sick student within seconds. He checked his pulse, then his breathing.  
He picked him up gently and advanced towards the window.

"Quickly Sakura, run to the Godaime's office and tell her to hurry to the hospital"

Receiving a nod from her, he jumped out the window and zoomed towards the hospital. She went down the stairs, out the building and then onto the rooftops. She  
hurried to the Hokage's office. Explaining to the guards of the emergency and her sensei's orders, she hurried to Tsunade's office.

"What is it now Sakura, I was about to go for lunch" she says clearly annoyed

Sakura bowed "I am deeply sorry Tsunade Sama but Kakashi sensei told me to rush here to get you"

Tsunade raised an eyebrow "Oh and what for?"

"Naruto didn't show up for training, so we went looking for him. I found him in his house, boiling hot, cuts covered in pus and he wouldn't wake up" She explained "Sensei  
took him and rushed to the hospital"

Tsunade quickly got up.

"Shizune" she shouted

Her apprentice appeared in the doorway

"Yes Tsunade Sama?"

"We need to get the hospital ASAP"

"Yes maam"

They both rushed towards the hospital with Sakura following them

* * *

Tsunade stormed into the hospital building where she found medics surrounding Naruto on a bed. She ordered them to take him to an emergency room which they  
obeyed.

Once in the room, leaving Sakura, Kakashi and a newly arrived Sasuke outside, she proceeded to check him over. He had a massive fever, but she didn't understand  
why the Kyuubi wouldn't heal him. Then she noticed that he hardly had any fat on him. He was malnourished and she wouldn't be surprised if he hadn't eaten in  
months. She quickly removed the dirt and disease from the cuts and healed them.

A big question was why he hadn't eaten. She noticed that his fists were clenched up, so to avoid further damage she went to unclench them. The first one was fine  
but the second wouldn't budge. She ordered a Hyuuga med Nin to deactivate his hand reflex and muscles via his chakra network. His hand opened to reveal a broken  
golden necklace. She realized it must have been the one got Sakura.

They continued for a few hours until he was back to better health and his regeneration kicked in. They hooked him up to some nutrient-liquids to his IV. She was after  
answers though after seeing the bruises on his body and the condition of the necklace. Only one person could give them to her.

She walked into the hallway and the remaining members of team seven asked how he was.

"He is still in bad condition but he is steadily improving"

They all sighed in relief

"But he was severely malnourished. It looked like he hadn't eaten in months"

They gasped at this news

"But Tsunade Sama, that can't be right. He had been taking solo missions, so he must have had money to buy food" said Sakura remembering the conversation she  
overheard at the door of the Hokage's Office.

Tsunade turned to the two healthy males and asked if they could leave for a while. They agreed. She turned to Sakura once they were gone

"That is true; he has been doing solo D rank missions for a month. But can you tell me if this looks familiar to you?"

Tsunade took a package out of her pocket and emptied it into Sakura's hand. Sakura gasped. It was the necklace he had bought her. Realisation swept over her.

"Ah, you realize it now. Naruto even though he lives in horrendous conditions, starved himself for months, just to save up for that" she growled

"And I found bruises and internal bleeding in some parts of his body"

She saw Sakura start to shake and tears ran down her face.

"So I am going to take a guess at what happened" she continued "You got a mysterious gift and automatically thought it was Sasuke. But then you found it was  
Naruto instead. So you wanted payback for your embarrassment. SO YOU KICKED THE CRAP OUT OF HIM AND LEFT HIM ALONE" she screamed at the end, red in  
the face from anger.

Sakura was now sobbing uncontrollably. She had done it so many times before, but not this bad. But Naruto had always got right back up again.

"Go home Sakura, I will deal with you later" She turned to go in the room, but was stopped by a question

"Can I see him, please?" Sakura begged

"Not just now, he is resting. Come back in a few days"

She entered the room and shut the door leaving Sakura alone in the corridor. She then ran out of the hospital to her house.

* * *

Two hours later, Tsunade was watching Naruto sleep, keeping an eye on his condition

KNOCK KNOCK

"Enter" she said quietly, so not to disturb the sleeping boy. Kakashi entered the room and gently closed the door. He walked next to Tsunade

"How is he now?"

"He is fine. He has regained some weight. But he will be in here for a few weeks"

"How did it get so bad? Shouldn't the Kyuubi have healed him?"

"It didn't have enough energy to do so. It managed to keep him alive but couldn't heal his wounds or his malnourishment"

Kakashi nodded. He had heard what his female student had done and was upset with her. He had spoken to her and explained she would be punished for attacking  
a fellow Ninja.

"Why did he not eat? Surely he knew what he was doing was wrong?" he asked

"Yes, but people do crazy things when they are in love, don't they"

Kakashi silently agreed. He looked at his sleeping student and then went to continue his duties.

* * *

A few days later and Sakura came to visit straight away. Tsunade was a little wary but agreed. So she was now sitting next to his bed, watching his sleeping form.  
She had been doing some serious thinking since she left the hospital.

Her mother had told her not to go near Naruto when she was young as he was dangerous. Then when she was put in the same team, she told her to just ignore  
him and hit him.

But as she thought about it, Naruto had done her no real harm. He cheered her up and/or took her mind off of Sasuke if he rejected her again. He always protected  
her at the cost of his own safety. She remembered the condition his home was in, but decided to not ask as it was not her business.

She was knocked out of her thoughts by the movement next to her. Naruto was slowly sitting up and he was groaning. He looked around for a source of liquid to  
quench his thirst, when a glass filled with water entered his view. He grabbed it weakly and gulped it down.

Once finished he uttered out "Thank You"

"You're Welcome"

His eyes widened at the recognised voice. He turned his neck to look to find Sakura at his bedside. He shrank back in fear and raised his arms in front of him to protect  
himself.

"I am sorry, please don't hit me" he whimpered

Sakura was shocked as she had never seen him so afraid of her. She gently pushed his arms down and turned his face to her.

"No, Naruto. I am sorry. I was having a bad day and I took it out on you" she said sincerely

"But I shouldn't have bothered you. I knew you wouldn't like it….."

He stopped and suddenly looked desperately around him. He was about to get out of the bed, when she stopped him.

"What's wrong?" she asked

"I had the necklace in my hand at home, but it is gone" he said

She put her hand inside her shirt and lifted out the necklace around her neck to show him.

"But I thought you didn't like it? I wasn't trying to buy your love. I just wanted you to know how much I care for you"

"I know you aren't trying to, not now. I took it to a jewellers, which happened to be the one you got it from and explained. The shopkeeper was going to exchange  
it for a new one a new one, but I asked for it to be repaired"

He looked closer and noticed it still had some bashes and scrapes but looked great. She took his hand in both of hers.

"I know how much you care for me Naruto, but I still do care about Sasuke"

He looked down, but his head was pointed back at hers via her hand

"But I would love to be friends with you though" she said

Naruto was upset but to be accepted as her friend was just as good. He nodded his head

"Close your eyes, please" she requested

He did as he was told and then felt something on his forehead. Opening his eyes he saw Sakura near the door, blushing. She turned the handle and was about to  
leave when she turned slightly and said

"When you get out of the hospital, we could go for a-a date i-if y-you want" she stuttered, embarrassed

Naruto just nodded his head stunned from the kiss and proposal

"But it won't be ramen" she added, sticking out her tongue at the blonde boy

"Sakura Chan" he whined

* * *

Naruto was by himself, awake in his hospital bed. It was late, but he couldn't sleep. He was looking forward to his date. He wondered if he should tell her about the  
Kyuubi, but he decided against it. The Hoage was sorting out his living conditions, so his current apartment would be refurbished or he would get a new one. He  
smiled and finally slipped into unconsciousness and dreamt of the future

But unbeknownst to him, Orochimaru had dispatched his Elite guard to bring back the Uchiha heir.


End file.
